Chainless bicycle.



No. 653,968. Patented July l7, I900.

F. C. SCHOENTHAL. CHAINLESS BICYCLE.

(Application filed July 17, 1599.) v

(No Model.) I r 2 Shee'ts-Sheei Patented July I7, I900. F. C. SCHOENTHAL. CHAINLESS BICYCLE.

(Application filed July 17, 1899.) (No Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

cm: PETERS co, FMOTO-UTNO" WASHINGTON. o.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDRIOK C. SOHOENTHAL, OF BUFFALO, NE\V YORK.

CHAINLES S BICYCLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 653,968, dated July 17,1900.

Application filed July 17, 1899. Serial No. 724,209. N m del-l To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDRIOK O. SCHOEN- THAL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Chainless Bicycles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved chainless bicycle or similar manuallypropelled vehicle; and the principal objects of the invention are to provide a power-transmitting device so constructed and arranged as to lessen the friction to the minimum degree, to so strengthen that portion of the frame supporting the power-transmitting device as to render it practically unyielding and rigid, and to fasten the power-transmitting-device-supporting-frame portion to the balance of the frame so as to be easily detached therefrom to disconnect the gearing for cleaning, repairing, or other purposes.

It also relates to certain details of construction, all of which will be fully and clearly described in the following specification and particularly pointed out in the claim, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a portion of a bicycle constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on or about line a a, Fig. 1. Fig. 3is an enlarged central section through the rearroller gear-wheel and a portion of the rod supporting the same. Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of the gear-wheel looking in the direction of the arrow V, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is an enlarged section through one of the roller-teeth on or about line b b, Fig. 4. Fig. 6 represents an enlarged edge View of a fragmentary part of the power transmitting device supporting portion, illustrating the manner of fastening the same to a frame extension. Fig. 7 is an enlarged side elevation of one of the crossbars looking in the direction of the arrow X and also a section through the connecting-rod.

In referring to the drawings in detail like numerals designate like parts.

The frame of my improved bicycle, portions of which are shown, is of the usual well-known construction, with the exception of that portion supporting the power-transmitting mechanism, and has a crank-hanger 1 and rear diagonally-extending stay-tubes 2. An angular metallic plate 3 is brazed or otherwise rigidly secured to the lower end of the rear diagonally-extending stay-frame tubes 2, located upon the power-transmittin g side'of the frame. This plate3is substantially D-shaped in form, and two logs or extensions 4 project substantially horizontally rearward from one side of the crank-hanger l and are arranged one vertically above the other.

The power-transmitting-device-supporting portion of the frame comprises two tubes 5 and 6, preferably arranged parallel to each other and connected together at the ends by cross-bars 7. These cross-bars are each provided with a substantially-central enlarge ment 8, having an interiorly-screw-threaded transverse opening 9. This portion of the frame is employed in lieu of one of the lower substantially-horizoutal rear stay-tubes and is detachably secured to the main portion by bolts 10, which pass throughlugs extending inwardly from the endsof the D-shaped plate 3 and the crossed ends of the tubes 5 and 6, and cross-bars 7 and bolts 11, which pass through the forward ends of the tubes 5 and 6 and the cross bars 7.

The preferable form of the driving and power-transmitting mechanism is shown in the drawings, in which a gear-wheel 12 is rigidly mounted upon a crank-shaft13,rotatably supported upon ball-bearings in the crankhanger 1. A gear 14 is mounted upon the hub 15 of the rear or driven-wheel 16, and a connecting-rod is rotatably mounted on ballbearings in the transverse openings 9 and carries a gear-wheel at each end that meshes with the gear upon the crank-shaft and the gear upon the rear hub, respectively. The

connecting-rod is preferably formed with atubular middle section 17 and front and rear end pieces 18 and 19, inserted and rigidly brazed in the ends of said tubes. The front end piece 18 has a cone 20, which terminates forwardly in a peripherally-toothed plate forming a gear-wheel 21. The teeth 22 of this gear-wheel 21 extend at an angle or bevel from the body of the wheel and are each forked or branched, and a roller 23 is rotatably mounted between the two members of each of said forked or branched bevel-teeth upon a bolt or shaft-rod 24, which passes through openings in said members-and is rigidly locked in position by the nut 25 or similar fastening means. The rear end piece 19 has an intermediate peripheral enlargement 26, which forms a shoulder against which the rear end of the tube 17 abuts, which merges in a screw-threaded portion 27 and finally terminates in a reduced screw-threaded portion 28. The rear-roller gear-wheel 29,which is provided with forked teeth 22, having rollers 23, supported upon shafts 24, that are locked in position by nuts 25, similarly to the gear-wheel 21, is provided with a central interiorly-screw-threaded opening and screws upon the screw-threaded portion 27 and is firmly locked thereon by a nut 30, screwed upon the reduced end 28. These gear-wheels, which I term bevel roller gear-wheels, are so arranged relatively to the gear-wheels proper upon the crank-shaft and the rear or driven wheel that when the power-transmitting-devicesupporting portion of the frame is properly attached to the main part they operatively engage or mesh with said gearwheels so that each fixed tooth of the gearwheels contacts with the opposing roller 23 of the adjacent forked or branched tooth 22 of the bevel-roller gear-wheel, which rolls or turns upon its supporting-bolt under the influence of the movement of the fixed tooth, and thus reduces to a minimum the rolling or guiding friction incident to the operation of the gearing.

The cones of the bearings supporting the connecting-rod may be formed integral with the end pieces, as shown at 20 in Fig. 2, or separate therefrom, as shown at 40 in Fig. 3, and the bearing-cases 31 of the said bearings are provided with peripheral screw-threads and screw into the screw-threaded openings 9 in the enlargements 8 of the crossbars 7 and are locked therein in their adjusted position by the annular locking-rings 32 or similar fastening devices. Antifriction-balls 33 are interposed between the cones and bearing-cases,and the usual felt or similar washers 34 to prevent the entrance of dirt or dust are preferably provided.

The usual gear or inclosing cases 35 and 36 are arranged around the front and rear gears and are preferably form ed in two or more separable parts, to permit the easy disengagement of the gears upon the connecting-rod from the gears upon the crank shaft and rear hub when desired upon the removal of the bolts 10 and 11.

The gear-wheels l2 and 14 are preferably formed with a plurality of diagonally outwardly and rearwardly extending or bevel teeth, which are sufficiently narrow to fit or extend between the two members of the branches of the bevel-teeth 22 and contact with the rollers 23, as before described. (See Fig. 2.) The rear wheel is provided with the adjusting devices 37, and one end of its shaft 38 is supported in a horizontal slot 39 in the D-shaped plate 3.

The dismounting, assembling, adjusting, and operation of m yimproved bicycle will be easily understood from the foregoing description and drawings.

I claim as my invention- A chainless bicycle having a frame provided on one side with a lower horizontal stay-tube, a driven gear-wheel having a shaft, a crankhanger connected at one side to the forward end of the horizontal stay-tube and provided with rearwardly-extending lugs on the opposite side, a D-shaped plate arranged at the rear of the frame on the said opposite side and having a horizontal slot for the reception of the driven-wheel shaft, a support composed of two parallel tubes and transverse crossbars detachably secured to each other and to the D-shaped plate and rearwardly-extending lugs of the crank-hanger at their rear and forward ends respectively, by bolts passing through the rearwardly-extending lugs, the D-shaped plate and the ends of the tubes and cross-bars, a connecting-rod journaled in the cross-bars, a gear-wheel at each end of the connecting-rod, a crank-shaft journaled in the crank-hanger and having a gear-wheel meshing with the gear-wheel at one end of the connecting-rod and a gear on the driven wheel meshing with the gear-wheel at the opposite end of said connecting-rod.

FREDRIOK G. SCHOENTHAL.

Witnesses:

ERNST W. SCHNEIDER, L. M. BILLINGS. 

